NBA Rumors: Isaiah Thomas Likely Missing Months With Hip Injury, Pushing Derrick Rose Into Even Bigger Role
New reports indicate that Isaiah Thomas could miss months with an injured hip, leading to rumors that the Cleveland Cavaliers will be pushing Derrick Rose into a major role this season.
The Cleveland Cavaliers nearly scrapped the Kyrie Irving trade after a physical revealed that Thomas was hampered by a hip injury that could likely require surgery. The Cavs were able to push through and squeeze a bit more out of the Boston Celtics to complete the deal, but now it looks as if Thomas will miss a huge chunk of his first season with the Cavs.
A new report from Jason Lloyd of The Athletic claimed that Isaiah Thomas hasn’t progressed to running yet and that the injury could keep him out until the All-Star break or later. That would leave the top contender in the Eastern Conference missing a player who was needed to pick up the considerable slack left over by Irving’s departure.
As Business Insider noted, the injury to Isaiah Thomas will also likely elevate what at the time seemed like a quiet off-season pickup, the signing of All-Star guard Derrick Rose. Though Rose has been hampered by injury over the last few seasons and lost much of the explosiveness that made him the NBA MVP, he is still able to carry an offense, the report noted.
“However, many were critical of his unwillingness to pass, lackluster defense, and continued inability to space the floor. Next to LeBron James, some of those weaknesses can be mitigated. The Cavs would need Rose to be more of a secondary playmaker — a player who could hit the open man after James initiated the offense or attack a close-out and get to the rim.”
Rose may be in that role for a long time. Isaiah Thomas appears to be in no rush in the rehab process, saying he is taking a long-term view of his career.
“There’s never been an indication that I wouldn’t be back, and there’s never been an indication that this is something messing up my career,” Thomas said, according to ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski.
“Maybe I am not going to be back as soon this season as everyone wants me to be, but I’m going to be back, and I’m going to be the same player again. No doctor has told me anything different than that.”
Report: Isaiah Thomas could be out until All-Star break https://t.co/Td8Jqn0wC7
— NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSBoston) September 1, 2017
According to @JasonLloydNBA, Isaiah Thomas' hip injury could keep him out for much longer than expected: https://t.co/ImKAeXnnyT pic.twitter.com/4zbSdeyTQQ
— SLAM (@SLAMonline) September 2, 2017
But that could put additional pressure not only on Derrick Rose but LeBron James who has often had to pick up the slack during his broken-up tenure with the Cleveland Cavaliers. So while Thomas will likely be back with a few months to gain chemistry with his teammates and Derrick Rose is still able to step up to fill some of the void, it may be a difficult situation for a team hoping to convince LeBron to stay in Cleveland after this season.
[Featured Image by Al Bello/Getty Images]
